We hear it all the time – It’s “FREE”! Yep, a free subscription, a free calendar, free information, free inquiry, a free car, free chance to win $5000 for life, free food stamps, free Medicare and Medicaid - or is it really free Free must be the most used adjective on TV. Free, free, FREE! Everybody wants to get something for free.
Only, is it really free? If it is a free entry into a lottery, you have a lesser chance of winning than to get hit by lightning. But, hey, it’s “free” so why not take a chance?
All you have to do is give up all your information—your telephone numbers, your e-mail address, your mailing address, your interests, children’s ages, married or not, and all other sorts of information.
But, hey, it’s free, so why worry. If you don’t play the game, you can’t win a free T-shirt (like you need another T-shirt). Your information is what marketing (and free) is all about.
Once a marketing firm gets your information, they sell that information to all the companies that want to sell you something. All of a sudden you are inundated with all kinds of e-mail, snail mail, and targeted advertising on your computer.
But, hey, it’s “free!”
Marketing is a big statistics game. It's all about numbers. If you give them enough information, they can even do target marketing, which racks up even more sales. Advertise to enough people, you are bound to get a certain number of sales.
Ever hear of “Thigh Master?” If you sell “Thigh Master” for $19.99 (plus shipping, handling, and taxes) and if you make a dollar profit on a million sales, you make a million dollars. You are now paying the price for “free.” Don’t you enjoy those 10-30 robo-calls a day?
When the government gets involved, then you are playing for really high stakes. So, what are the stakes? The stakes are just your vote, your dependence, and your soul. The government wants you so dependent you effectively become a slave. Is it happiness? No, but it is “free.” Do you want happiness or to get things for “free?”
The country is now in debt to the tune of more than $28 trillion. Who is going to pay off that debt? Just the interest on the debt will consume a lot of money. $28 trillion at three percent is $60 billion dollars. Our children and grandchildren will pay that debt in some form and pay the consequences in a poorer economy, poorer quality of life, poorer living conditions, poorer wages, and be so miserable that they may have less children, less concern for the “poor,” and less concern for the homeless.
There may be riots, there may be a revolution, and there will be oppression. Our children’s and grandchildren’s life will not be their own – all because the government is overspending its income. You cannot overspend your income for long until you have to pay the debt. The government is no better than you. Because we are the government, we will pay for the government extravagance. All because we want it “free.”
What is the answer to all this unhappiness? The Convention of States will propose amendments to balance the budget, have term limits on Congress and the Supreme Court, and other limitations on government so that we can stop the insanity that is creeping onto every aspect of our lives.
That takes care of government, but what can we the American people do?
We can stop expecting the government to solve our problems, we can take responsibility for our own lives, we can live within our means, we can plan for the future, and we can take solace in the fact that our children and grandchildren will not have a poorer life than the one we have now. And remember...
...if the government giveth, the government can taketh away.
